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Offenses turn it on in fourth quarter

Posted: Sunday, September 19, 2010

By Chris Starrs

The casual observer might look at Georgia's 31-24 loss to No. 12 Arkansas and think it was a shootout from whistle to whistle, but in reality, most of the big fireworks were reserved for the final eight minutes of play.

The two teams combined for 21 points and 270 offensive yards in the fourth quarter, with the Razorbacks earning the final tally on a 40-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Mallett to wide receiver Greg Childs with 15 seconds remaining.

"We understood before this game started that it would come down to the fourth quarter," said Childs, who had three catches for 82 yards. "We knew we'd have to grind it out until the fourth and we knew it wouldn't be an easy game. We did what we had to do."

What Arkansas had to do in the final period was hold on for dear life as the Bulldogs reached the end zone twice - first on a 10-yard pass from Aaron Murray to Tavarres King with 7:52 remaining and then on a 3-yard run by Waushan Ealey that capped a six-play, 52-yard drive that tied the game at 24-24 after trailing all day.

"Even when we were down by two touchdowns, I thought we had a chance," Georgia offensive tackle Clint Boling said. "We didn't quit and kept playing hard and it came down to the wire."

After the Bulldogs tied the game, the Razorbacks took over at their own 20-yard line with 3:55 remaining, but Mallet was sacked for a 4-yard loss and then threw an incomplete pass to Jarius Wright, forcing a punt, bestowing upon Georgia the ball and the momentum with a little more than two minutes remaining.

But after Ealey picked up a first down on the drive's first play, Murray was subsequently sacked twice and had to punt it away, with Arkansas set at its own 27 with 47 seconds remaining. Mallet completed a pair of passes to D.J. Williams to advance the ball to the Georgia 40 before his final completion to Childs.

The Bulldogs had time for a final play, which saw Murray fling the ball into a group gathered at the Razorbacks' goal line, but Georgia's fourth-quarter magic had by that point left the building.

"We had the momentum; we scored two touchdowns in a row and the defense was making plays for us and we had our shot," said Murray, who completed 15 of 27 passes for 253 yards and one interception. "We knew if we could get close enough, we've got the best field-goal kicker in the nation (in Blair Walsh), who can make it from 50 or 55 yards. All we needed was another 15 or 20 yards and he could have put it in for us. It hurts knowing we had our shot and couldn't win it."

Although losing in the closing seconds was frustrating, Georgia coach Mark Richt was able to find a silver lining.

"We weren't willing to give in," Richt said. "That's the sign of a team that has something to it."